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Dance Theater Workshop presents "John Jasperse Company in the return of "Becky, Jodi and John" (May 27-30, Manhattan, NY)

by Sarah Hart
May 27, 2009
Dance Theatre Workshop
219 West 19th Street
New York, NY 10011
212-924-0077
Committed to remounting recent creative works that deserve greater visibility, Dance Theater Workshop presents the return of John Jasperse Company's critically acclaimed Becky, Jodi and John, which premiered at the Bessie Schönberg Theater in April 2007. Becky Hilton, Jodi Melnick, and John Jasperse met through dancing 20 years ago. While their paths have brought them to varied places, they remain friends and are deeply connected to the form dance. Born out of a desire to reweave their paths back together, this poetic portrait of Hilton, Melnick, and Jasperse celebrates their varied senses of humor and their shared commitment to dance. The work examines the inescapable constancy of self and its paradoxical capacity to radically transform as well as how the phenomenon of dancing informs this transformation. Becky, Jodi and John features choreography and direction by John Jasperse, live original music by Hahn Rowe, lights by Jasperse and Joe Lavasseur, and features performances by Becky Hilton, Jodi Melnick and John Jasperse.


"Three-Way Connection Of Minds and Bodies" — The New York Times

"…just as a great actor is said to be able to hold listeners spellbound while reading the telephone book, performers like these can thrill you just by rolling imaginary lint off their fingertips." — The Village Voice

Performances will take place at Dance Theater Workshop in the Bessie Schönberg Theater, May 27-30, 2009 (Wednesday – Saturday at 7:30pm). There will also be a Post-Show Talk on May 27 (Wednesday) with Tere O'Connor. Tickets are $10 online and $15 through the box office and are available for purchase online at dancetheaterworkshop.org, over the phone at 212.924.0077, or in person at the box office. Box office hours are Monday – Friday from 5pm – 9pm and Saturday – Sunday from 12pm – 8pm. Dance Theater Workshop is located at 219 W. 19th Street between 7th and 8th Avenues.


John Jasperse has been Artistic Director/Choreographer of John Jasperse Company New York, NY, since 1985. His work has been presented by festivals and presenting organizations in the United States, Brazil, Chile, Israel, Japan, and throughout Europe including The American Dance Festival, The Brooklyn Academy of Music's Next Wave Festival, La Biennale di Venezia, Cannes International Dance Festival, Dance Umbrella, EuroKaz, Kampnagel, Montpellier Danse, Tanz im August, TanzQuartier Wein, Künstlerhaus Mousonturm, and the VEO Festival. He and his company have received numerous prizes, grants and fellowships, including American Music Center Live Music for Dance, Creative Capital, Foundation for Contemporary Performance Arts, The MAP Fund, Meet The Composer's Commissioning Music/USA, New England Foundation for the Art's National Dance Project, The New York State Music Fund, National Endowment for the Arts, New York State Council on the Arts, New York Foundation for the Arts, Lambent Fellowship in the Arts, John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation and a New York Dance and Performance "Bessie" Award for the recognition of his body of work. Jasperse recently received a new works commission from the Brooklyn Academy of Music's 25th Anniversary Next Wave Festival for which he created a new work Misuse liable to prosecution. Jasperse is currently developing a new work, which is a 25th Anniversary Commission of the Joyce Theater, NYC, and a co-production of The Forsythe Company, Dresden, Germany, where it will premiere in September 2009. Jasperse has also created commissioned works for Baryshnikov's White Oak Project, Batsheva Dance Company, and The Lyon Opera Ballet.


Becky Hilton is an Australian teacher, dancer, choreographer, and director. She has performed in and contributed to the work of many artists including Stephen Petronio, Tere O'Connor, Donna Uchizono, John Jasperse, Michael Clark, Mathew Barney, and Lucy Guerin. She has taught in schools, festivals, and for companies all over the place and created work in a variety of contexts, from small contemporary dance companies to large-scale community events. Recently she created GO, a suburb sized performance involving 200 participants in Melbourne's inner west. Hilton is the curator for Stompin a youth focused dance and performance company based in Launceston, Tasmania's second biggest city. In 2009 Hilton will be working in New York, Rosario, Brussels, Copenhagen, Launceston, and her hometown Melbourne.


Jodi Melnick is a New York based dancer, choreographer, and teacher, currently teaching at Barnard College. Last February, her work 'Suedehead' and 'Fanfare' were presented at The Kitchen in NYC — Fanfare, in collaboration with artist Burt Barr. Additionally, recent work has been presented at La Mama, and Dance Theater Workshop (DTW), in NYC, in Dublin, Ireland at the Dublin Dance Festival and at the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA), and at Western Oregon University. She has been privileged to work with choreographers Sara Rudner, Susan Rethorst, Vicky Shick, Dennis O'connor, Donna Uchizono, Yoshiko Chuma, Liz Roche, Irene Hultman, and of course, John Jasperse and Rebecca Hilton creating 'Becky, Jodi and John'. Jodi has worked with Trisha Brown as an assistant director on two of her Operas, 'Winterisse' and 'Da Gelo a Gelo'. Melnick is the recipient of two Bessie awards in dance (2001 and 2008).


The remount of Becky, Jodi and John is supported by Dance Theater Workshop's Commissioning and Creative Residency Program with support from The Ford Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency, the New York State Council on the Arts, and the Jerome Robbins Foundation. Additional support is provided in part by American Express.


This production is made possible, in part, by the generous support of the Leibowitz and Greenway Family Charitable Foundation through the David R. White Producers Circle.
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